Law Of Reservation: How Legislature And Judiciary Fought The Battle Over The Years

Kartikey Bajpai, LL.M., University Of Lucknow, Lucknow

ABSTRACT

India as a country is divided in language, belief, religion, caste, sub caste and so on depending upon how deep you want to investigate. Some were classified as upper and some were classified as lower caste. There are historical records of unequal and unfair treatment of people of lower caste due to perpetual indoctrination of this hierarchy. When the country got independence and became capable of making its own laws, the Constitution came into force in 26 Jan. 1950. The framers of the Constitution of India inserted provisions giving directives to the state to make special laws for Promotion of educational and economic interests of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other weaker sections under Art. 46 of Part IV of the Constitution of India. The same Constitution also gave the people of India guaranteed fundamental rights under Part III, one of which is Right to Equality which were enforceable against state if state attempt to violate those through any law defined under Art. 13(3) of the Constitution. Due to these provisions the Legislature which was now empowered to make special laws treating its people unequally started to come in direct confrontation with the judiciary which was the guardian of fundamental rights of the people. And the Battle Began.

This paper aims at tracing important milestones where these two branches of the govt. went head to head over the years over the matter of law of reservation and in doing so tracing the important checkpoints on the law.

Keywords: Reservation, Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles of State policy